Fiction Term 2 2010


Library Hint:

The library enquiry iBistro now contains a feature called LibraryThing. LibraryThing displays the following in the item information screen:

· Other editions and translations
· Similar titles
· Tag words


This software enables you to find a similar title to a favourite book by suggesting other titles or providing tag words which, when clicked, will take you to a list of books containing that word.


An example of LibraryThing on iBistro















1. Twilight : the graphic novel.
twilight.jpg
When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes, mesmerizing voice, and supernatural gifts, Edward is both irresistible and impenetrable. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret...
This is the first instalment of the graphic novel version of Twilight.
Picture from Good reads downloaded 20/4/10
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7619292-twilight


2. The girl who kicked the hornet’s nest.
Salander is plotting her revenge - against the man who tried to kill her, and against the government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life. But it is not going to be a straightforward campaign. After taking a bullet to the head, Salander is under close supervision in Intensive Care, and is set to face trial for three murders and one attempted murder on her eventual release. With the help of journalist Mikael Blomkvist and his researchers at Millennium magazine, Salander must not only prove her innocence, but identify and denounce the corrupt politicians that have allowed the vulnerable to become victims of abuse and violence. Once a victim herself, Salander is now ready to fight back.


3. Guardian of the dead by Karen Healey
Guardian_of_the_dead.jpg

At her boarding school in New Zealand, Ellie Spencer is like any ordinary teen: she hangs out with her best friend, Kevin; obsesses over her crush on a mysterious boy; and her biggest worry is her paper deadline. Then everything changes: In the foggy woods near the school, something ancient and deadly is waiting.
Author’s website:
http://www.karenhealey.com/books/guardian-of-the-dead/
Review by Cindy Hannikman available at Fantasy Book Critic: http://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2010/03/guardian-of-dead-by-karen-healey.html
Picture downloaded 5/4/10 Karen Healey
http://www.karenhealey.com/books/guardian-of-the-dead/


4. The last battle of the Icemark /Stuart Hill.
Icemark.jpg
Final in the trilogy.
With her murderous daughter, Medea, banished to the spirit world, Queen Thirrin's tiny kingdom of Icemark has enjoyed a time of peace. But her consort, Oskan Witchfather, fears for their nation - and rightly so. Medea is out for revenge. Allied with the King of the Darkness and his terrifying Ice Demons, the power of evil grows stronger day by day. The dark is rising and the Icemark and its allies must stop it.

Picture downloaded Fantastic fiction 5/5/10
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/stuart-hill/last-battle-of-icemark.htm


5. Frankenstein : the graphic novel / Mary Shelley ; script adaptation Jason Cobley.
frankenstein.jpg
It was the dawn of science and technology. Anything seemed possible, even the creation of life itself. Victor Frankenstein becomes obsessed with this idea and works relentlessly to prove his theories, but the glory he imagined becomes a living nightmare – not only for him, but for his friends and family too. This classic horror tale deals with such timeless subjects as alienation, empathy and understanding beyond appearance. (Book Jacket)

Picture downloaded from Borders 5/5/10
http://www.borders.com.au/book/frankenstein/1324328/


6. The hunger games / Suzanne Collins.

hunger_games.jpg1st book in the Hunger Games triology
In a future North America, where the rulers of Panem maintain control through an annual televised survival competition pitting young people from each of the twelve districts against one another, sixteen-year-old Katniss's skills are put to the test when she volunteers to take her younger sister's place.
Picture downloaded Suzanne Collins' home page: http://www.suzannecollinsbooks.com/works.htm



7. Catching fire by Suzanne Collins
catching_fire.jpg2nd book in Hunger Games triology.
By winning the annual Hunger Games, District 12 tributes Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark have secured a life of safety and plenty for themselves and their families, but because they won by defying the rules, they unwittingly become the faces of an impending rebellion.
Author’s website: http://www.suzannecollinsbooks.com/


8. Witch & wizard / by James Patterson with Gabrielle Charbonnet.

witch_and_wizard.jpg1st in series.
You are holding an urgent and vital narrative that reveals the forbidden truth about our perilous times....
This is the astonishing testimonial of Wisty and Whit Allgood, a sister and brother who were torn from their family in the middle of the night, slammed into prison, and accused of being a witch and a wizard. Thousands of young people have been kidnapped; some have been accused; many others remain missing. Their fate is unknown, and the worst is feared—for the ruling regime will stop at nothing to suppress life and liberty, music and books, art and magic...and the pursuit of being a normal teenager.
Picture downloaded 18/5/10
http://www.booktopia.com.au/search.ep?author=James%20Patterson&title=Witch%20and%20Wizard


9. Arrival by Chris Morphew
arrival[1].jpg!st in The Phoenix files series.

Luke is having a rough year. When his parents split up, his mother drags him to Phoenix, a brand-new town in the middle of nowhere. But Phoenix is no ordinary town. There are no cars, no phones and no internet. Luke thinks this is as weird as it gets. Then he discovers that someone is plotting to wipe out the human race. Phoenix is suddenly the safest and most dangerous place on earth. And the clock is already ticking. There are one hundred days until the end of the world.
Picture downloaded Angus Robertson 18/5/10
http://www.angusrobertson.com.au/book/arrival/1326695/


10. Blood and gold /| by George R.R. Martin.
storm_of_swords.jpg

Book 3, part 2 of A song of ice and fire series.
The Seven Kingdoms are divided by revolt and blood feud. Winter is approaching and the wildings are poised to invade the Kingdom of the North. Robb Stark must protect himself from them and the threat of his enemies in the south.
Picture downloaded ABE Books18/5/10
http://www.abebooks.com/9780007119554/Storm-Swords-Martin-George-0007119550/plp


11. Shiver/ Maggie Stiefvater

Grace is fascinated by the wolves in the woods behind her house; one yellow-eyed wolf in particular. Every winter, she watches him but every summer, he disappears. Sam leads two lives. In winter, he stays in the frozen woods, with the protection of the pack. In summer, he has a few precious months to be human ...until the cold makes him shift back again. When Grace and Sam finally meet, they realize they can't bear to be apart. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human - or risk losing himself, and Grace, for ever.
Picture and review: http://www.fishpond.com.au/Books/Childrens/Fiction/Love_Romance/9781407115009/?cf=3&rid=1448404750&i=1&keywords=shiver


12. Percy Jackson and the last Olympian
All year the half-bloods have been getting ready for battle against the Titans, knowing the chances of a victory are bleak. Kronos’s army is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, the evil Titan’s power only grows.
While the Olympians struggle to contain the monster Typhon, Kronos starts to advance on New York City, where Mount Olympus stands virtually unguarded. Now it’s up to Percy Jackson and an army of young demigods to stop the Lord of Time.

The long-awaited prophecy surrounding Percy’s sixteenth birthday unfolds, and as the battle for Western civilization rages on the streets of Manhattan, Percy faces a horrifying feeling that he may be fighting against his own fate.


13. Handle with care by Jodi Picoult
Willow O'Keefe is born with brittle bone disease, which means she will suffer a lifetime of pain. As the family struggles to cover medical expenses, her mother, Charlotte, decides to file a wrongful birth lawsuit against her obstetrician for the compensation which might ensure a lifetime of care for Willow. But it means that Charlotte has to say in a court of law that she would have terminated the pregnancy if she had known about the disability in advance. And the obstetrician she's suing isn't just her physician - she's her best friend. Handle with Care is an absorbing narrative which also questions the basis of medical ethics and of personal morality. What rights do parents or doctors have to terminate a life? How disabled is too disabled? As a parent, how far would you go to save someone you love?
Picture download from Amazon 10/6/10 www.amazon.com.au

14. Mister Monday by Garth Nix


Book 1

Seven days. Seven keys. Seven virtues. Seven sins. One mysterious house is the doorway to a very mysterious world – where one boy is about to venture and unlock a number of fantastical secrets.
Arthur Penhaligon is not supposed to be a hero. He is supposed to die an early death. But then his life is saved by a key shaped like the minute hand of a clock. Arthur is safe – but his world is not. Along with the key comes a plague brought by bizarre creatures from another realm. A stranger named Mister Monday, his avenging messengers with bloodstained wings, and an army of dog-faced Fetchers will stop at nothing to get the key back – even if it means destroying Arthur and everything around him.
Desperate, Arthur escapes to the mysterious house that has appeared in town – a house that only he can see. Maybe there he can unravel the secrets of the key – and discover his true fate. (Publisher’s Abstract)
Picture downloaded Reading Matters 25/6/10
http://www.readingmatters.co.uk/book.php?id=249



15. Grim Tuesday by Garth Nix
The second book in the ‘Keys to the kingdom’
Arthur Penhaligon didn't think he would have to return to that very strange house where on Monday he was nearly killed but the next day brings further challenges.


16. Drowned Wednesday by Garth Nix
The third book in the ‘Keys to the kingdom’
On Wednesday, Arthur has received an invitation to the House that he can’t refuse. Drowned Wednesday has sent a ship to pick him up from the hospital even though his hometown is inland.


17. Sir Thursday
The fourth book in the ‘Keys to the kingdom’
After their adventures on the Border Sea, Arthur and Leaf are set on heading home. But only Leaf can make it through the Front Door. Arthur is blocked by someone – or something – that has taken over his identity.


18. Lady Friday
The fifth book in the ‘Keys to the kingdom’
Four of the seven trustees have been defeated and their Keys taken, but for Arthur the week is still getting worse. His friends have been captured by the Piper and the New Nithling Army still controls most of the Great Maze.


19. Superior Saturday by Garth Nix

The sixth book in the ‘Keys to the kingdom’.
Arthur Pendragon is about to learn the secret of his own identity, the identity of the Architect, the complete Will of the House, and the fulfilment of his fate - but not without danger to himself and others.
Picture downloaded Allen & Unwin Publishers 27/7/10: http://www.allenandunwin.com/default.aspx?page=94&book=9781741145908


20. Lord Sunday by Garth Nix
The conclusion to the Keys to the Kingdom series. Arthur Penhaligon wields six of the seven Keys to the Kingdom, but will that be enough to defeat Lord Sunday? Master of the Incomparable Gardens, the last of the Trustees, and the most powerful Denizen in the house, Lord Sunday is a fierce opponent. Arthur is running out of time - he will have to act quickly if he is to stem the tide of Nothing and save the House and the Secondary Realms. Will he ever get home to his family? Does he still have a home and family? Is he even really human anymore? And what will be revealed when the Will of the Architect is finally made whole?


21. Generation dead by Daniel Waters
All over the country, teenagers who die aren’t staying dead. Against her better judgement, Phoebe finds herself drawn to Tommy Williams. He’s gorgeous, funny, on the football team. And dead.
But not everybody is as accepting as Phoebe. There are those who would like to rid the community of this sinister phenomenon, and they’ll stop at nothing to achieve it…(Book jacket).


22. Cousins across the seas :|ba selection of short stories from the countries of the Commonwealth /|cedited by by Glenys Acland and Ken Watson.
Contains short stories from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australasia and the United Kingdom.


23. The Amethyst child by Sarah Singleton.
It’s the summer holidays and Amber is bored. Then everything changes when she meets Dowdie, a non-conformist who draws Amber into a world of dark and dangerous secrets…secrets of the Amethyst Children.
Picture downloaded Fantastic Fiction 29/7/10http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/s/sarah-singleton/amethyst-child.htm



24. Across the nightingale floor by Lian Hearn
A story about Takeo, a young man who is one of the Hidden, a reclusive and peaceful people who nothing of war. When his village is pillaged, Takeo alone survives - rescued by the mysterious Lord Otori Shigeru. Takeo's revenge takes him on a journey. His voyage is one of treachery, of honour and loyalty, of beauty and magic. He learns that he has mystic talents he never knew he had.


25. Grass for his pillow by Lian Hearn
Takeo, heir to the great Otori clan, has pledged his life to the secret Tribe. His supernatural skills of invisibility and acute hearing make him their most deadly assassin.


26. Brilliance of the moon by Lian Hearn.
To claim what is rightfully his, Takeo must conquer the warlord Arai Daiichi and the nobleman Lord Fujiwara, but every step is fraught with danger for him and his great love, Shirakawa Kaede. Their destinies are determined by forces beyond their control.


27. Identical by Ellen Hopkins.

Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical twins. As daughters of a district court judge father and a politician mother, they are an all-American family – on the surface. Behind the façade each sister has her own dark secret, and that’s where their differences begin.
Secrets like the ones the twins are harbouring are not meant to be kept from each other or anyone else. Soon it is obvious that neither sister can handle it alone, and one sister must step up to save the other, but the question is – who?
Teenreads.com. Review: http://www.teenreads.com/reviews/9781416950059.asp
Picture downloaded Fantastic Fiction 29/7/10
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/ellen-hopkins/identical.htm